Strange Way
by Jesscheaux
Summary: Things never turn out the way we plan them. A student at Deimon High finds a place to belong with the person she least expected.  Rated M for strong language. Slight spoilers for the Fall Tournament arc. HirumaOC


Strange Way

O o O

Rated R for strong language

Disclaimer: I did not create, nor do I own Eyeshield 21 or any of its characters. I do, however, own the original character that was created for this story.

O o O

He was the last person I thought I'd fall in love with.

Foul-mouthed, dastardly, and down-right evil. If I were to look up his lineage, I expect that I would find either nothing, or that his father was the devil himself.

Hiruma Youichi had most of Deimon high's students under some kind of spell. All he'd have to do was whip out the black book emblazoned with the word 'Threats' and there was silence immediately. Some of them were a little more brash though and wouldn't give in by simply seeing the book that contained God only knows how many secrets. For those people there was either kicking, or posturing with guns. Hundreds and hundreds of guns. They came from out of nowhere, and no matter how many he would put down, there were always new ones waiting to be used.

He did seem to favor the medium sized machine gun with the strap on it though. It was the only gun I'd seen him carry with a strap. I heard that's the one he used on the Death March. That deadly 2000 kilometer trek through Texas to Las Vegas, Nevada.

He truly was evil, but you might say he was more of an evil genius. He ran his Football club with an iron fist, gathering together the strongest players in their specialized positions. He'd already taken a gopher and a third-stringer from the baseball team and turned them into football geniuses. If that wasn't enough, he had also reformed a gang of three hoodlums into team players that now shared one dream and had incredible focus. Even the shortest boy at Deimon high was now a power-house lineman thanks to his coaching and training.

A mad genius. Hiruma Youichi.

I'd been watching him and his freakishly pointed ears and teeth since I'd entered Deimon high. We were in the same class, with seats next to each other in the back. I'd watch him blow bubbles with that sugarless gum and polish his guns instead of paying attention to the teachers. Yet, despite all that he had the highest marks of anyone in the school. Even Kasugano Mamori and Yukimitsu's grades were second and third on the list after his. Of course he'd roped them into the football club as well.

Disciplinarian Anezaki Mamori and super genius Yukimitsu Manabu. He used Mamori as a slave to the football club, and Yukimitsu to help devise strategies and memorize information quickly. Hell, they even had a cheerleading squad now headed by one of the player's younger sister, Taki Suzuna. Suzuna was a ball of fire and seemingly unafraid of Hiruma. I suspected that she'd volunteered her services instead of being forced into it. Good to know that he doesn't have control over EVERYONE.

That's right, I wasn't under his control, and I thought I would never would be. You see, he doesn't have any blackmail on ME, Akui Kaji, 2nd Year Drum Major of Deimon High's marching band.

He approached me at one day at lunchtime, setting his tray down lightly next to mine. My best friend Chiyo, who was sitting across from me, suddenly turned green and said she had to leave. I rolled my eyes as he let out that devilish cackle and put his right hand on my left shoulder.

"Yo...I hear that you lead the marching band."

I swatted his hand away as I continued to sip my milk, "Did you figure that out by yourself?"

"Keh!" he retorted, grinning so that his fangs were in full view. I'm not exaggerating when I call them fangs, that boy has the sharpest teeth I have ever seen, almost serrated. "I want you to start playing at the football games, fucking band geek!" he jabbed a random pistol into my side and lightly applied pressure.

"And if I don't want to?" I replied flatly, still undaunted by his display of power. I knew he didn't have anything on me, but what I didn't know is if HE knew that. Apparently he didn't because he whipped out his infamous threat book seconds later and brandished it to me.

"Feeling a little more cooperative now? If I didn't know better I'd say you didn't have any school spirit..." his words dripped like poison with a sugar coating.

I whipped my head around to face him and his beady green eyes and slapped the book out of my face, "Why don't you try ASKING like a normal person, Hiruma!"

He looked puzzled for the barest of seconds and then started flipping through his black book, scanning his long, bony fingers down each page until he reached the end of the writing, "Hmm...I don't know how you fucking did it, but I don't have ANYTHING on you in here you fucking band geek..." his eyes narrowed to slits and he bared his fangs once more.

"Am I supposed to be scared of that face?" I rolled my eyes and turned back to eat the last of my rice, "I've seen scarier...what was that Zokugaku guy's name, Habashira Rui? Or maybe one of those Egyptian guys who wear makeup."

Hiruma slammed his flattened palm down on the table, "You're going to come play for us." his tone was demanding and final.

I growled and cursed under my breath before answering, "I would really LOVE to, but I think I'd be more cooperative if you just ASKED ME like a normal person."

"FUCK!" he yelled as he jumped up from the table and stomped out of the cafeteria.

What an asshole.

O o O

I was walking home from school alone, since I only lived three blocks away and Chiyo lived in the opposite direction. Some girls might be scared to do that, but I could give a pretty good kick to the nuts if provoked. After about half a block into my walk I heard footsteps behind me. I narrowed my eyes and spun on my heel to try and catch this stalker off guard.

"Ke ke ke ke ke..."

That was Hiruma's voice alright, but I didn't see him at all. I scratched my head and turned back the other way, only to slam into a solid, lean body. On top of this body was a head with a stack of spiked yellow hair, pointy ears that were pierced against school regulations, and those Goddamn fangs.

"OH SO SORRY..." he grinned as I met the cement, and held his hand out as if to help me up.

"Do I look STUPID to you?" I brushed off the guesture and picked myself up while dusting off my skirt.

"No...but you DO look blind, fucking four eyes!" before I could even blink again my glasses had been snatched away from my face and all I saw was a blurry haze.

"HIRUMA YOU DOUCHEBAG! I CAN'T FREAKIN' SEE!" I flailed about helplessly trying to get them back but I knew it was useless. He was an athlete, he was fast, and he had me right where he wanted me. The world was painted in impressionism as I sighed and admitted defeat.

"Well now, we have a helpless band geek, whatever shall I DO with her? I KNOW! You're coming to football practice!" he grabbed my wrist and started dragging me before I could protest.

I could do nothing but go on, as I couldn't possibly see without my second pair of eyes. I muttered the the most fowl curses in every language I knew under my breath. I suddenly felt the presence of a few more people and a pair of bony hands clamped onto my shoulders.

"OI TEAM, MEET THE DRUM MAJOR AKUI KAJI! She's told me that from now on they'll come and play for us at ALL our games to help keep up the team spirit, ISN'T THAT NICE?"

There was a round of cheering and a young voice spoke with the most excitement, "YAY!!! KAJI-SAN YOU'RE AWESOME!" I felt a small pair of arms wrap around me and I just stood there like a statue, "Thank you so much! It'll be great to have some music to cheer to! LET'S SUPPORT DEIMON TOGETHER KAJI-SAN!"

"Uhh...uhh...yeah ok." I mustered a half-smile, I sure wished I could see their faces, and that damn HIRUMA, he had found a way to trick me using what, at the time, was my ONLY WEAKNESS!

"Hiruma! Give those back to her!" an older female voice scolded him.

"Kekekeke...she just needed a little more persuasion was all..." he leaned towards me, placing the spectacles back in their proper position, "There." followed by an evil grin.

My world became 20/20 and I felt overwhelmed with a sudden sense of vertigo. I couldn't believe he'd found a way to get to me like this! I'd show him, I would give him the WORST BAND IN ALL OF TOKYO! But then I saw all those hopeful shining faces. Suzuna was the girl who'd hugged me and she skated around in a strange dance with a tall blonde who kept spinning on his heel with his other leg thrust high up into the air as he shouted 'AH HA HA!' That must be her brother Taki Natsuhiko. The large, round student that Hiruma always hung out with was there too, clasping his hands with tears in his eyes, "YATTA!" he yelled in delight.

Super Genius Yukimitsu flashed me a bright smile, "Doumo arigatou gozaimasu Kaji-san." Mamori, who was standing next to him, nodded and smiled, echoing his thanks.

I was suddenly surrounded by three short, first-year boys. One was jumping around like a monkey, and the shortest one grunted several times, speaking in the language of strong men, which unfortunately I couldn't understand. The third was wearing a helmet with a green shield in front of his eyes and he bowed to me, "Thank you, Kaji-senpai!" Three more first years grunted and smirked at me as well giving a triple thumbs up, ah delinquents, you gotta love 'em.

I sighed heavily, and gave the football club the first geniune smile I was able to muster, "Let's all work hard together everyone!" I pumped my fist into the air and they all shouted with me, "YEAH!"

Hiruma suddenly grabbed my shoulder and escorted me away from the club, "Come on, I'll walk you home."

"Like I need YOU to walk me home." I snorted with disdain.

"My damn team is really fucking happy thanks to you...they've been asking about it for months."

"You should've just asked sooner, asshole. Hmph."

"That's not the way I do things...Ke ke ke..."

"Uhhh huh."

We reached my house in silence and he suddenly gave my back a hard slap that pushed me several feet forward, "Hm." he jerked his head up in a weird sort of nod and gave a half wave with his hand. What the? I guess that was his way of saying thanks. What a weirdo. Well, like it or not, me and my band were a permanent fixture of the Deimon Devilbats football games from then on.

O o O

I don't know exactly when it happened, but one day during practice he came over and I felt my heart make an odd jump in my chest. I'd been seeing this jerk every day for the past few months as they continued training for the fall tournament. Each time I felt myself hate him a little less. This heart-jumping thing was NOT what I expected to come next. Even after our relunctant agreement, he was never civil to me. Although I figured out I was right with the slap thing. It was his way of expressing happiness. With pain. Oh Lord, what had I gotten myself into?

"Fucking band geek, get over here!" he sneered and jerked his thumb towards himself.

"We're still working on the new fight song, can't you wait?"

"No."

I rolled my eyes, if I didn't go see what he wanted, I wouldn't be able to finish band practice, I knew this from experience already. Those guns of his made a hell of a lot of noise, and if it wasn't guns it would be fireworks. I climbed down from the ladder, setting down my megaphone on the top rung and trotted over, "This better be good, Hiruma." I tapped my foot in impatience waiting to hear what he had to say.

"Meet me behind the Devilbats club building after your practice."

"WHAT?! YOU MADE ME STOP PRACTICE TO TELL ME THAT?!" I furrowed my brow as I thrust my opened palm towards his face, "IDIOT!"

"You better be there..." He spat on the ground like a typical athlete and hoisted his football helmet back over his head. That arrogant idiot had given himself the number '1' for his jersey. How typical, although I had to admit, it wasn't just for show. Hiruma was an excellent quarterback even when he had no one to practice with, and his already honed skills had increased by tenfold since he built up the Devilbats team.

"FINE." I yelled over my shoulder, waving my hand and finally getting back to practice, "FROM THE TOP PEOPLE!"

As promised, I made my way over to the back of the Devilbats club building after practice. I waited there for a little while, getting pretty impatient with him for not holding up his end of the bargain and being there on time. His practice might still be going on, I thought momentarily, but he knew exactly when my practice ended so why would he keep me waiting like this? What bothered me most of all was that I actually caved in to his demand of meeting him here in the first place. I kept trying to convince myself to go ahead and go home, but my feet stayed firmly planted on the earth, and my back pressed against the brick wall. I sighed and closed my eyes.

Then I felt something cold on my forehead.

Something REALLY COLD!

"AGH!" I reached up to grab it and opened my eyes seeing that devilish guy standing in front of me, holding a can of peach tea against my forehead. Peach tea was my favorite...how did he...well I guessed I shouldn't think too much of it, he knew pretty much everything about everybody afterall. I guess I had just been too much of a goody-two-shoes for him to have anything embarassing on me that I would hate to have other people know.

"Thanks..." I mumbled as I took the can from him and opened it.

"Hmm." he grunted and leaned beside me on the wall so that our arms brushed together lightly.

I felt my face flush unbidden and prayed that he wouldn't see it, if he did I could always blame it on the heat, although the temperature was going down as the sun started its descent.

"So...uh..." I drank a few more sips and turned to look at him, a breeze picked up and I found myself staring at his profile. The sunlight fell across his face in a way that best accentuated his sharp features. The eyes that I once found beady were now full of life, depth, and mystery. His lips were slightly moistened from the soda he was drinking and his perfect square-shaped jawline was followed by his long neck, adam's apple bobbing slightly as he took another drink from his can. I flushed again, he was wearing a simple white t-shirt and jeans now, but his body was still a bit wet from his post-practice shower. His t-shirt was a bit too tight and I couldn't help but notice how it clung to his lean and slightly defined chest.

"What the fuck are you staring at, damn band geek?" his blunt words flung me out of my reverie.

I looked back upwards at his teal eyes that were now focused on mine, seeing a little bit of mirth in them.

"Nothing..." was the only thing I was able to squeak out as I took another drink from my can and jutted my lower lip out into a pathetically childish pout.

"Hmph." he half grinned at me, clearly enjoying my pain.

"Did you want to talk to me about something, Hiruma?" I finally found myself able to speak without blushing or squeaking.

"Nope. Now shut the fuck up, the damn sun is setting."

I nearly choked on the last drink from my can, was he saying that he just invited me here to...watch the sunset with him?! It was unthinkable! My heart began racing and pounding inside my chest, was this his version of a...dare I even think the word...date?! My eyes widened with what I identified as half horror and half elation as my arm went slack, dropping the aluminum can to the ground. I kept my eyes on the can, watching as it rolled away slowly.

"Dammit, look up, band geek!" he grabbed my cheeks and pushed my head up in what I guessed was his most gentle hold, which still wasn't that gentle, "I wanted you to fucking see this so see it already."

My eyes may have been betraying me at that moment, or perhaps it was just the pink and orange rays that are typically cast from a setting sun, but Hiruma Youichi's face was a little darker than usual. It was just for a moment, and then it was gone and that smirk pasted back on where it usually was, fangs and all.

"Ok ok..." I was about to retort with some kind of snotty one liner, typical of our conversations, but instead I just kept my mouth shut and gazed over at th e sun, stealing glances at him from time to time.

He pulled his hands up to rest behind the back of his head and I swear he emitted a noise that sounded like a contented cat purring. I smirked at him and then forced my gaze back onto the sun, although I found the young man beside me much more fascinating to look at.

That was when we started 'dating' I guess you would call it. It wasn't by any means the normal kind of lovey-dovey dating scenario where the boy and girl hold hands and squeal how much they love each other, draw their names in little hearts, and drink from the same glass at the ice cream shop. No, it was something alot more subtle than that.

I found myself going out of my way to see him, and although he never officially asked me out I knew that we were 'together'. He never mentioned it, but he'd give me this LOOK across our desks and I knew what he was thinking. We'd go to the same place everyday and he'd always bring me a peach tea. We'd watch the sunset. I think he wanted to keep it secret to keep harmony within his team, that, and I could never imagine me going to watch him practice and cheering for him, and him blowing kisses to me from the field. Yuck, no, that was a really gross mental image.

I caught his eye during lunch too, and we'd often have conversations with just our facial expressions. It was weird, but it was also interesting. His best friend began to notice one day, but Hiruma beat him up then and there and he never mentioned it again. Sometimes I wondered if I was ok with this kind of weird relationship. Just being with him and standing next to him was enough, but I knew that wouldn't last for very long.

I met him behind the Devilbats club house that evening. The Fall tournament was starting this weekend and he was really nervous, I could tell by his posture, his hands shoved deep into his pockets, and that ever present bubblegum blowing was much more frequent.

"Hiruma..." I wanted to try and make him feel better, even if just a little bit, and lately I had been fantasizing about what kissing him would be like. I wanted to kiss him so badly my chest ached whenever I thought about it. I mean, we hadn't even held hands yet, so what made me think that we were just going to start kissing all of a sudden?

"Hm?" the large bubble he'd been blowing popped in his face, leaving a residue of pink gum all over him.

I couldn't stop the laugh that came next, "HAHAHA! Sorry, sorry, my bad!"

"Well at least ONE of us can laugh..." he sighed and began picking the gum off.

I handed him my handkerchief, "I know...you're nervous about the tournament."

"Duh. What the fuck else would it be?" He spit the remnants of his gum out and wiped his mouth with my handkerchief. He tucked it into his pocket afterwards with a slight smirk.

"You don't have to be such an asshole about it! You've been working too Goddamn hard to start doubting yourselves now! You're going to crush them all, and I'll be right there with the band, playing your fight song as loud as we can. WE'RE GONNA KILL THEM!" I yelled, thrusting my clenched fist into the air in the Devilbats fighting cry.

Hiruma quickly clapped his hand over my mouth, but he was smirking so I knew he wasn't mad, "Not so loud, damn band geek."

I rolled my eyes as he removed his hand, "You know, I don't think it'd be too much to ask for you to call me by my name every once in awhile."

The hand that once covered my mouth had snaked down and entwined it's fingers with mine, "I'll think about it..." he smirked.

Grr, how dare he do this to me, getting all lovey-dovey all of a sudden. I couldn't even talk now if I tried. I concentrated on the way his hand felt wrapped up with mine. I squeezed his hand gently and I felt a squeeze back and my heart nearly burst out of my chest. Even though I had fallen in love with the most evil man in the world, I don't think I could've been any happier than I was in that moment.

But it turns out I was wrong.

Just as the last rays of the sun were disappearing, he shifted his weight and used our clasped hands to pull me into his arms. He gazed down at me with a face that wasn't at all evil, scheming, conniving, or even smirking this time. He dropped my hand and then used his to cup my chin with the most gentle touch I have ever felt from him. Time nearly stopped, or maybe that was just my heart, as his eyelids lowered and he guided our lips so that they were nearly touching. I felt his breath on my face and he whispered, "Thank you...Kaji..." then closed the gap between us so quickly I didn't even have time to let the fact that he'd said my name sink in. My arms instinctively reached to hook around his neck as I leaned into him, tasting him for the first time. It was even better than the scenarios that I had conjured up instead of paying attention in class.

Hours seemed to pass by in this little land of bliss that we'd made for ourselves, but in reality it was only about a minute or so. We both pulled back at the same time, breathless, and he leaned his forehead against mine, his hands still resting at my waist. I could only smile like an idiot, staring up into his eyes and searching. I knew I'd remember this day for the rest of my life. We kissed again. And many more times after that.

O o O

I always found it interesting that we could have such a close relationship without having so many words between us. It felt more like instinct than anything else. Almost as if we were two of a kind, although I'd never be as evil as he was. I used to despise his manipulation once upon a time, but now I began to admire it. People started asking me if I was feeling well, and many of my band members suspected that there was something between me and Hiruma. I walked around in a love-coma, wondering why I'd never noticed how blue the sky was and how green the grass was. Every moment without him seemed like an eternity and every moment with him was all too fleeting. I swore I'd shoot myself if I started writing syrupy poetry.

They'd been winning game after game in the tournament, and he became more and more happy with each win. This of course meant increased beatings for the team, but they were all in great spirits. Hiruma had even devised a way to signal me from the field. What most people consider the hand sign for 'rock on' was his way of telling me that the next play was for me, he was thinking of me, or to watch him closely. It warmed my heart because I didn't think I'd ever be so lucky as to have someone care about me like that. It confused the team at first, but he told them to ignore it or he'd hang their underwear and jock-straps from the flagpole. Interestingly enough though, Suzuna would scream 'ROCK ON!' every time she saw Hiruma use this hand signal. The cheerleaders, then the band and the crowd would repeat it after her as a sort of battle cry. Hiruma rolled his eyes, and I almost fell over giggling because I was the only one who knew what it really meant.

The Devilbats had just defeated their toughest opponent yet, the Kyoshin Poseidons with their array of insanely tall Japanese boys. That's when they found out their next opponent was to be the Seibu Wild Gunmen. The Wild Gunmen were a really formidable football team. Hiruma considered their quarterback, 'The Kid', to be the best quarterback in all of the high schools of Japan. Their wide receiver was also scary, if not a little stupid. Tetsuma was more like a machine than a man.

Hiruma was even more worried now, and he drove his team to the edge with a new training regimen aimed at countering The Kid's incredible passes. He still came for our 'date' every day at the usual time though.

One day, he was late.

I had been waiting for nearly thirty minutes and I glanced at my watch every few seconds, my fears increasing by the moment. Hiruma could take care of himself, that was for sure, but I still couldn't help but think something might've happened to him. I tried to convince myself that he was just keeping practice late because of the big game that was a mere two days away, but it didn't help alleviate my fears. I myself had been so shameful as to let practice out early in my haste to see him. If he was really still at his own practice...

My mind drifted elsewhere when he suddenly came bounding up to me, out of breath, "Fuck, I made it just in time!" a piece of the sun was still above the horizon.

"Hiruma..." I wanted to grab him and hold him with all my might, but I held back for the moment as he held his hands on his knees still panting.

"Heh. No drink for you today fucking band geek." he grinned up at me evilly.

"Is that all you can say?! HERE I WAS WORRIED SI--"

He cut me off with a kiss, wrapping his arms around my waist tightly.

"--CK...about you..." I finished after he released me, "Dammit, you jerk."

Then he reached into his pocket, retrieved a small black box and threw it at me.

My eyes widened as I clambored to catch it, "What is it?" I blinked in confusion, today wasn't my birthday and it wasn't wrapped or anything...why had he gotten me a present out of the blue?

"Happy Fucking Anniversary ya damn band geek." he said, grinning at me and waiting for me to open it.

My mouth opened and closed a few times, but nothing would come out. Now that I thought about it, it WAS our three month anniversary. He actually remembered it... I blushed as I opened the box slowly. Inside was a small silver ring with an adorable silver bat on it. My eyes filled with tears as I slipped it onto the ring finger of my right hand. It fit perfectly. I couldn't stop myself from what happened next.

"HIRUMA! THANK YOU! I LOVE IT!" I shrieked as I tackled him in a hug that knocked us both to the ground. He grinned up at me, brushing my hair away from my face with those long, thin fingers of his.

"Hmm." he smirked and claimed my mouth with his kiss once more.

We were so caught up with each other that we didn't hear the rustling noises and murmurs from the crowd of people that were now standing around us.

"I KNEW Kaji-senpai was going out with that devil dude!" the voice of the second trumpet proclaimed with glee.

"HIRUMA!" his best friend's shriek pierced our little world, "CONGRATULATIONS! I'M SO HAPPY FOR YOU!"

We broke apart immediately and stared up at the group of band members and football players that surrounded us.

Chiyo grinned at me, "WELL WELL WELL!"

Suzuna raised her hand up into the air in a 'rock on' sign, "I TOLD YOU GUYS/SHE'S/ 'Rock On!'"

"It all makes sense now!" the monkey-like one exclaimed, agreeing with Suzuna.

"AH HA HA! Of course I knew this all along," Taki began spinning around, his right leg straight up in the air, "My powers of deduction are 110 PERCENT!"

Suzuna slapped him, "That's not even possible!"

Mamori and Yukimitsu were standing to the side, their mouths covered, grinning and whispering to each other from behind their hands.

"Heh." Hiruma helped me up and addressed the crowd, "Looks like our secret's out." he pulled his book of threats out of his other pocket and brandished it.

"AAAAAAAAHHHH!" came the collective scream, followed by deathly silence.

"That's what I THOUGHT! Now get back to work all of you! Me and my fucking girlfriend are going to continue celebrating our fucking anniversary!"

"AWWWWWWW!"

"Whatever, come on band geek, let's get the fuck out of here." he grabbed my hand as he spun on his heel and led me away.

I grinned and waved over my shoulder to the crowd behind us.

Damn it was good to be alive.

O o O

FIN


End file.
